Says That Military Helicopters Are Scattering His Pheasants And Partridges, Costing Him Business

A gamekeeper in Essex in the U.K. is seeking reimbursement equivalent to about $40,000 because low-flying helicopters are chasing away his pheasants and partridges. Richard Hearn says that the MoD owes him the restitution because the birds scatter every time the helos fly low over the countryside where he holds rights to arrange hunting outings.

Hearn says the noise from the low-flying Apache, Chinook, and Merlin helicopters scatter the birds, and he has to go round them up, sometimes cancelling scheduled shoots arranged for his patrons at Gages Farm in Little Maplestead near Halstead, according to the U.K. newspaper The Daily Mail. He said the low-flying helicopters have been an issue since he acquired the hunting rights in 2010.

He thought the problem was solved when the MoD paid him £5,000 following a similar complaint last year. He assumed that the aircraft would be re-routed after they'd had to pay, but has since recorded 18 additional incidents.

The MoD says that all of its aircraft are following procedures outlined in the Military Aviation Authority’s UK Low Flying Handbook, which states that "the MoD will pay reasonable ex-gratia compensation where a link can be established between military aircraft activity and any loss sustained subject to evidence being provided."

(Apache helicopter image courtesy UK MoD)

FMI: www.mod.uk